From the tree to the labyrinth : historical studies on the sign and interpretation / Umberto Eco ; translated by Anthony Oldcorn.
Material type:
TextLanguage: English Original language: Italian Publisher: Cambridge, Massachusetts : Harvard University Press, 2014Copyright date: ©2014Description: 633 pages : illustrations ; 25 cmContent type: text Media type: unmediated Carrier type: volumeISBN: 9780674049185 (alk. paper)Uniform titles: Dall'albero al labirinto. English. Subject(s): Semiotics -- History | Language and languages -- Philosophy -- HistoryDDC classification: 121/.68 LOC classification: P99 | .E2613 2014Summary: EPISTEMOLOGY, THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE. The way we create and organize knowledge is the theme of "From the Tree to the Labyrinth," a major achievement by one of the world's foremost thinkers on language and interpretation. Umberto Eco begins by arguing that our familiar system of classification by genus and species derives from the Neo-Platonist idea of a "tree of knowledge." He then moves to the idea of the dictionary, which--like a tree whose trunk anchors a great hierarchy of branching categories--orders knowledge into a matrix of definitions. In Eco's view, though, the dictionary is too rigid: it turns knowledge into a closed system. A more flexible organizational scheme is the encyclopedia, which--instead of resembling a tree with finite branches--offers a labyrinth of never-ending pathways.
| Item type | Current library | Call number | Status | Date due | Barcode |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| wnor- Book | Wundowie Wundowie Adult Non Fiction | 121.68 ECO (Browse shelf(Opens below)) | Available | 31111055719296 |
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"Originally published as Dall'albero al labirinto: Studi storici sul segno e l'interpretazione, by Umberto Eco, © 2007 RCS Libri S.p.A."--Title page verso.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
EPISTEMOLOGY, THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE. The way we create and organize knowledge is the theme of "From the Tree to the Labyrinth," a major achievement by one of the world's foremost thinkers on language and interpretation. Umberto Eco begins by arguing that our familiar system of classification by genus and species derives from the Neo-Platonist idea of a "tree of knowledge." He then moves to the idea of the dictionary, which--like a tree whose trunk anchors a great hierarchy of branching categories--orders knowledge into a matrix of definitions. In Eco's view, though, the dictionary is too rigid: it turns knowledge into a closed system. A more flexible organizational scheme is the encyclopedia, which--instead of resembling a tree with finite branches--offers a labyrinth of never-ending pathways.
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